Campus News

Mercy College Receives $84,000 DASH Emergency Grant

$84,000 Grant Supports Launch of Emergency Grant Program at Mercy College of Health Sciences. The funds will address financial barriers to help low-income students stay enrolled to completion.

Mercy College of Health Sciences (Mercy College) has received an $84,000 Dash Emergency Grant from Great Lakes Higher Education Corporation & Affiliates to operate and maintain a student emergency aid program. Emergency grants will be integrated into the college’s overall student success strategy with the goal of improving retention and completion rates.

Mercy College serves students from diverse backgrounds, and a situation that might be a headache for one can be a major financial crisis for another. If a student is already struggling to make ends meet, an unexpected car repair or medical bill might cause that student to withdraw from college.

“Thanks to the DASH Emergency Grant, Mercy College has the resources to provide modest emergency grants to our students in times of greatest need,” said Karen Anderson, Ph.D. Vice President of Enrollment Management & Student Affairs.

This award will be used to augment our current efforts to build an emergency grant program designed to help students overcome financial obstacles and improve retention. The Mercy College grant award notification stated, “Your application showed a good understanding of our grant’s objectives and presented a solid plan for achieving them.”

Mercy College will begin making student emergency grants in fall 2017. Students will complete an application detailing their financial emergency. A Mercy College committee will review the application, and expenses up to $1,000 will be paid within two business days of approval. By quickly removing financial distractions, students can refocus on their studies and continue toward graduation.

Mercy College is one of the first four-year colleges to receive a Dash Emergency Grant from Great Lakes. A combined $7.2 million in grants was awarded to 32 colleges in Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio and Wisconsin.

Dash Emergency Grants for four-year colleges build on the success two-year colleges have achieved since Great Lakes began supporting emergency grant programs in 2012. These colleges report students who receive emergency grants stay in school at better rates and graduate in larger numbers.

“We’re pleased to extend our Dash Emergency Grant to Mercy College and other four-year colleges to help more at-risk students overcome financial obstacles to completion,” said Richard D. George, President and Chief Executive Officer of Great Lakes.

About Mercy College of Health SciencesMercy College has been preparing health care providers for more than 100 years. Mercy College is the only Catholic college in central Iowa and is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission (HLC). Watch how Mercy College students share their experiences by visiting mchs.edu/About-Us/College-News/Student-Stories. To learn more about health science academic programs, visit mchs.edu/academics.

About Great Lakes: Dedicated to making college education a reality since 1967.
Knowing that education has the power to change lives for the better, Great Lakes Higher Education Corporation & Affiliates was established as a nonprofit group focused on a single objective: helping students nationwide prepare for and succeed in postsecondary education and student loan repayment. As a leading student loan guarantor and servicer, Great Lakes has been selected by the U.S. Department of Education to provide assistance and repayment planning to more than 8 million borrowers—as well as assistance to colleges and lenders nationwide. The group’s earnings support one of the largest and most respected education philanthropy programs in the country. Since 2006, Great Lakes has committed over $200 million in grant funding to promote higher education access and completion for students of color, low-income students, and first-generation students. For additional information, visit home.mygreatlakes.org.